Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1952 (SND Vol. III).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1822-1846, 1940
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DEAR-MEAL, n.comb. A time of famine, lit. a time when the price of meal is high, esp. referring to a period towards the end of the 18th cent. Hist.Bnff.2 1940:
Aul' Sandy hid mony a tale to tell aboot the hardships o' peer fowk the year o' the dear-meal.Ayr. 1822 H. Ainslie Pilgrimage, etc. 233:
It was just the saxt year afore the dear meal.
Hence dear-meal-cart (see quot.).Dmb. 1846 W. Cross Disruption xv.:
This sort of vehicle came first into use among farmers when they were enriched by the prevalence of high war-prices. Hence it derived its name. . . . He perceived a spring-cart which he felt pretty sure was the “dear-meal-cart” of Whinnyside.
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"Dear-meal n. comb.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 19 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/dearmeal>
